Hinged last



March 18, 1930.

W. CREESE HINGED LAST Filed Doc. 20. l

Patented Mar. 18, 1930 UNITED STATES WALTER GREESE, OF LEICESTER, ENGLAND HINGED LAST Application led December 20, 1927, Serial No. 241,293, and in Great Britain February 11, 1927. 1

This invention relates to two-part hinged lasts employed in the manufacture of boots andV shoes and has reference more particularly to wooden lasts oi' the solid i. e. nongapped type wherein the dividing cutis curved and `concentric or approximately concentric with the pivot pin in the forepart of the last. The l invention may however be applied to other forms of hinged lasts.

The principal object of the invention is to provide improved means for locking the last in straightened condition such means being permanently combined with the last, i. e. not capable of falling out or being removed in operation under ordinary conditions of use,

and also adapted to be held in the unlocked position so that the operator has both his hands free to break the last.

The looking means are of the kind wherein a pin or equivalent member in one part of the last engages with ahole. or socket in the other part for the purpose of locking the last in al rigid manner against bending.

According to the invention a two-part hinged last is; locked in the straightened condition b-y a slidable pin, bolt or equivalent element operable in the part oi' the last which carries it by a rotary or oscillatory member adapted for actuation by hand or by means of a key or other instrument.

In a convenient embodiment a slidable pin or bolt in the heel part of the last engages with a hole or socket in the forepart and is moved endwise in. one direction by a spring and in the opposite direction by a rotary or oscillatory cam member.

In further describing the invention reference will be made to the accompanying drawing, wherein,

Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of a solid or nongapped last embodying a practical eX- ample of the invention, the last being in the broken condition.

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1 but shows the last in the locked condition.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the rotary cam member employed in such example.

`Figure 4 illustrates one iorm or means 50 adopted for rotating the cam member.

-Figure is a perspective-view of a modiiie'd form of cam member, and

Figure 6 shows a further form of means whichmay be adopted for rotating the cam member. A'

Figures 3 and 5 are drawn to an enlarged scale.

ln the xample illustrated in Figures A1 and 2, there is provided in the heelpartl of the last a pin 2, which Works in atubular g housing or sleeve 3 inserted in a hole 4 inthe heel part.

The upper part of the hole may bel slightly reduced so as to form a'locating shoulderf for the sleeve. The pin has a head 6 at, or near its lower end which is-adapted forengagement withthe 'orepart 7 of the last. This head has anchored theretofone end.` of a tension spring 8 which surrounds the pin :and at the opposite end is attached to a .shoulder 9 on the tubular housing. The movement of the pin in either direction'islimited by-a collar 10. The spring 8 operates to `withdraw the pinfrom the locking position. The pin ismoved into engagement with a socket 11 (or hole) in the orepart to lock the last inthe straightened condition by means of a cam member which inthe form shown in Figures 1 to14 consists of a discl or buttonlQ rotatable on an axis constituted on a screw 13 or equivalent member arranged substantially parallel to the axis of the slidab-le pin, in the heel part of the last. The disc or button has an interior grooved spiral cam 14 for action uponl the adjacent end of the pin' 2. Alternatively a disc or button 12a, Figure 5, having a spiral cam14a theface of which is lat may be employed. For operation by hand the rotary canimember may have a .knurled or serrated head 15 as shown for example in Figures 1 to 4, or as shown in Figures 5 and 6, the outer end ,ofthe cam member may have `formed thereon lugs or projections 16 whereby it may be turned by the finger and thumb or by means of a key or like instrument. disc or button may be otherwise formed, for example, it may have a lat, squared or other shaped head or boss thereon tor turning by hand, or a square hole ortwo or more `holes therein forengagement byrakey or like=in strument. The outer end of the pin 2 may be pointed or rounded to engage with a recess or depression 17 in the cam memberat the outer end of the actuating cam on assuming the locking position, or the cam may have a shoulder (not shown) or other means may be employed to limit the turning movement of the disc or button.

In the operation of locking means when the last is straightened the spiral cam depresses the pin against the action ofthe spring 8 when the disc or button is turned in one direct-ion so that the pin enters the socket 11 or hole in the forepart of the last and is held therein as represented in Figure 2 until rotation of the disc or button in the reverse direction whereupon the spiral cam permits withdrawal from the socket or hole by the spring, as represented in Figure 1. Since the spring then holds the pin retracted the operator can use both hands for bending the last. The collar 10 limits the outward movement of the pin by contact with the disc or button and the inward movement by contact with the sleeve 3.

In a modified form of the invention (not illustrated) the pin may be moved positively in both directions by a rotary or oscillatory member. For example, the said member may be of tubular form surrounding the pin and e have one or more cam slots or screw threads for engaging` the pin or a projection thereon to impart movement for projecting and retracting the pin. Or the said member may be in the form of a nut engaging with a screw threaded upper end or extension of or on the locking pin.

As illustrated the rotary or oscillatory member for actuating the locking pin or bolt is situated in a recess 18 formed in the heel part 1 so as to project but little above the top of the heel part. This is an advantageous feature of the invention in that by reducing the projection of the fastening device to a minimum, or obviating projection entirely, said device is much less liable to sustain injury owing to rough usage oi' the last and moreover it oiiers little or no obstruction as the case may be when the last is placed in a machine for operating upon the work as for example in a levelling machine. The disc also forms a cover over the housing in which the locking pin is situated and thereby prevents the entrance of dust and dirt. If desired, however, said member may be placed on the top of the heel part.

In a two-part hinged last of the aforesaid solid type with curved division cut I find it advantageous to form the usual shoulder 19 in the cut higher up than is the common practice. As a rule the square shoulder which serves as an abutment to limit the extension or straightening of the last is disposed about j5rd, the distance up the curved cut from the waist. I improve this construction by disposing the shoulder higher up, say about half way, as shown in Figure 1. This makes the last more rigid when subjected to pressure such as in a levelling machine.

lVhat I claim then is 1. In a two-part hinged last, locking means comprising a locking element slidable in one part of the last and adapted to engage with the other part of the last to lock the two parts in straightened condition, and a member on the last adapted for turning to operate said slidable element.

2. In a two-part hinged last, locking means comprising a slidable element in one of said parts for engagement with the other part to lock the last in straightened condition, spring means to move the element in one direction, and a member on the last adapted for turning to move the element in the other direction.

3. In a two-part hinged last, locking means comprising a locking pin slidable in one last part, a member on the last adapted for turning to cause the pin to engage with and lock the other last part, and spring means to withdraw said pin to unlock the last.

4. In a two-part hinged last, locking means comprising a locking pin slidable in one part of the last, a member on the last adaptedl when turned in one direction to cause said pin to engage with and lock the other part of the last, and spring means adapted when the aforesaid member is turned in the other direction to eiiect withdrawal of the pin from locking position.

5. A hinged last comprising a heel part and an articulated forepart, a spring-controlled pin in the heel part adapted to engage with the orepart to lock the last in straightened condition, and a member on the heel part adapted for turning to operate the locking pin.

6. In a hinged last comprising a heel part and an articulated iforepart, locking means consisting of a pin slidable in the heel part for engaging with a socket in the forepart, a spring to effect withdrawal of the pin from locking engagement and a rotary cam member for operating the pin ior locking purposes.

7. In a two-part hinged last, locking means comprising a spring-controlled pin in one part in one part for engaging a socket in the other part, and a rotary cam member on the last for operating said pin, said cam member being adapted for operation by hand.

8. In a two-part hinged last, locking means comprising a spring-controlled pin in one part for engaging a. socket in the other part, and a rotary cam member on the last for opcrafting said pin, said cam member being adapted for operation by means of a turning instrument. j

9. In a twopart hinged last, locking means comprising a locking pin incurable endwise in one last part to engage with a socket in the other part, a spring to move the pin to unlocking position, and a rotary cam member on the last to move the pin to locking position against the action of the spring.

10. In a two-part hinged last, locking means comprising a slidable spring-controlled pin in one part to engage the other part for locking purposes, and a rotary member on the last having an internal cam for acting upon the pin to move it to locking position.

1l. In a two-part hinged last, locking means comprising a spring-controlled pin movable endwise, and a member adapted for turning to actuate the pin, said member being WALTER CHEESE.

mounted to turn on an axis substantially parallel to that of the pin.

12. In a two-part hinged last, locking means comprising a spring-controlled pin slidable endwise in one part of the last to engage With and lock the other part, a cam member mounted to turn on an a-Xis substantially parallel to that of the pin for actuating the latter, and means on said member whereby it may be turned by hand.

13. In a two-part hinged last, locking means comprising a locking pin slidable in one part of the last and adapted to engage with the other for locking same, a spring to move said pin in one direction, a rotatable disc on the last adapted for turning by hand, and a cam on said disc the cam engaging With the adjacent end of the slidable locking pin.

14. In a two-part hinged last, locking means comprising a pin slidably mounted in one part of the last and adapted for engagement with the other part for locking the same, a spring to move the pin in one direction for unlocking the last, a disc mounted on the last for turning in a plane at right angles to the line of movement of the pin, and a cam on said disc to actuate the pin for locking the last.

15. In a two-part hinged last, locking means comprising a pin slidably mounted in one part for locking the other part, a spring to move the pin in one direction, and a rotatable member to move the pin in the other direction said member having on one side an interior spiral cam for engaging with the pin and on the other side a formation Which adapts it for turning by hand.

16. A two-part hinged last of the solid type having a curved dividing cut With a shoulder disposed about half Way up the curve from the Waist of the last, and locking means comprising a locking element slidable in one part of the last and adapted to engage with the other part to lock the tWo parts in the straightened condition, and a member on the last adapted for turning to operate said slidable clement.

17. A two-part hingedlast of the solid type comprising a heel part, an articulated forepart, the dividing cut between the said 

